How to take and root cannabis clones

A clone is a cutting from a healthy plant that grows roots and becomes a copy of its mother.

What research found

Researchers tested four common practices on cannabis cuttings:

• Rooting hormone. The tested 0.2 percent IBA gel gave about 2.1 times the rooting success of the tested willow-extract gel. That compared two formulations. It doesn’t prove the same benefit over every untreated cutting or rooting product.
• Leaf number. Cuttings with three fully expanded leaves had better root quality than those with two, but leaf number didn’t change rooting success.
• Trimming leaf tips. Cutting off leaf tips lowered rooting success, from 71 percent to 53 percent in the study, and didn’t improve root quality.
• Where you cut. Cuttings from top and lower branches rooted about equally.

Step by step

1. Pick a healthy branch on a plant in the growing stage and cut a few inches with a clean blade, just below a node.
2. Leave about three healthy leaves, and don’t trim their tips.
3. Use a rooting product only as its label and local requirements allow. Pour a small portion out separately so a cutting doesn’t contaminate the main container.
4. Set the cutting in a moist plug or cube, under a humidity dome, with gentle light and warmth.
5. Open the dome gradually as roots appear, usually within one to two weeks.

Take cuttings from healthy, appropriately tested stock. Keep incoming plants separate and inspect them, but a couple of symptom-free weeks can’t rule out HLVd. Clean tools between plants with an appropriate validated protocol; alcohol alone isn’t reliable against HLVd.